Reading The World Cup

As I sit in front of my television for the next month, transfixed by the joy of World Cup competition, I wonder what World Cup history is all about, what stories lie beneath the facades and motivation.

A book that I am interested in reading is Death of Glory! – The Dark History of the World Cup by Jon Spurling. I enjoy reading journalistic pieces exposing interesting stories and I’m sure political manipulation is rife when such a world wide event takes place. Another book would be The Soccer War, by Ryszard Kapuscinski, one of my favourite journalists. The Soccer War covers the war between El Salvador and Honduras leading up to the 1970 World Cup. If it’s anything like Kapuscinski’s other books, it will be a beautiful written account of his travels, with stunning insights.

In terms of personal recollections, I still remember my first World Cup, watching Hagi and co on our first colour television in 1990. I remember the joy of beating Russia. It was truly personal. The joy of watching our greatest player, Hagi, facing the world’s greatest player, Maradona, then going outside with friends and trying to replicate what we saw.

Bogdan Tiganov